The starters showed up and Washington didn’t enjoy it
The Commanders came to Owings Mills for a joint practice, the Ravens put their first-teamers on the field, and Washington’s offense had a long afternoon.
This one carried more weight than Saturday’s game in Minnesota, and it’s worth saying why up top. Saturday was backups and bubble guys. Today the ones were out there. Lamar, Derrick Henry, Rashod Bateman, and Mark Andrews all went against Washington’s defense, and the Ravens starters got the better of the day on both sides of the ball. Reporters on the scene called the Commanders offense ugly, and Jayden Daniels didn’t argue with it, admitting afterward it was “not the best day” for his group. Jesse Minter’s defense is the real deal and it’s easy to smell through the joint practices with the Vikings and Commanders. Kyle Hamilton, Nate Wiggins, Marlon Humphrey and Keondre Jackson all made splash plays in full-team sessions. With the talent adding to reports from two sets of joint practices paired with two dominant defensive pre-season performances? Jesse Minter’s defense is going to inflict pain. Pain via turnovers.
(video via Baltimore Ravens on Twitter)
Rashod Bateman showed out, can they get him the football?
You’ve seen the videos at this point. Zay Flowers is out with ‘something minor’ according to Minter. So Bateman steps up and dances the samba at the line of scrimmage like his name was Mayara Lima. Bateman has had one of the most frustrating careers that I can recall for any Raven. He’s shown brilliance in spurts: 2022 he had a white hot start before breaking his foot. 2024 he recorded seven touchdowns in nine games including two in the postseason. 2025 was one of the strangest seasons for a wide receiver I can recall. While many cite his injuries and availability as a problem, he’s quietly played in 50/55 games for Baltimore since the start of 2023. There have been trade rumors, off the field arrests, yet brilliance in practice has been a staple of this offseason. Big play Bate has glowed about this new offensive coaching staff, so, can they get him the football?
